OK, now that I have the turbo and have built the combustor and test stand, it is time to start plumbing some air tubes. These tubes will get the air from the compressor section of the turbo into the inlet of the combustion chamber. This is the air that will "fuel the fire" so to speak. Sorry about that, I'll try not to speak in quotes too often here.

There are also some pictures of the test stand being finished, and maybe other random things. This is just the process, and the order in which things happen.

New castor wheels for the test stand

These are the new castor wheels I got at Harbor Freight. Great wheels with cast iron centers and rubber outer. Will hold up to 330 pounds each! $2.99 for the fixed ones and $3.99 for the swivels. Great price, for those of you who have never purchased these kinds of wheels before. Remember, shop smart, shop S-Mart! (see the movie Army of Darkness for this reference)

Castor wheels lined up 1/4 inch from edges of the frame

Got the wheels lined up and decided that I didn't need to bolt them on, so they were just welded there. Since this stand will be used to build more engines later, it won't matter.

Tubing cut and machined to hold the turbo's front flange on the stand

These are the parts I cut to hold the turbo from it's front flange. The holes are 3/8 on the back and 1 inch on the front. This will allow the bolt to go all the way in and hold on only one side of the tube. If the bolts went through both sides of the tube, it could cause the tube to crush when the bolts were tightened. The bolt head will actually be in the middle of the tube when installed, and the turbo will be on the side with the smaller holes.

Turbo mounted on the test stand

Here is the bracket welded on with the turbo mounted to it. The turbo is supported only from the inlet.

The turbo mounted to the test stand. Note the size of the turbo

Here you can get an idea of the size of this turbo. It is 18 inches from the end rail to the center rail on the top side. This will be fun trying to cram it into that little bike!

3 inch pipe notched to form the reducing coupler

Since the flametube is only 2.5 inches in diameter, I chose to run pipe that small to the combustor. This is the beginnings of the reducer that was built to come off of the 3.5 inch outlet of the compressor.

Reducer hammered in to shape to reduce the diameter

With the slots cut, the sides were hammered in towards the center to reduce the diameter. The slots will be filled in with the welder later and ground down to produce a nice finish.

Reducer and bend that will connect the compressor to the combustor

The slots are hammered to almost the right size now, and will soon be welded together. The curved pipe section will connect the compressor to the combustor. It was formed by making angle cuts in the pipe and turning the sections 180 degrees then welding them back together.

Turbo mounted to the stand with 2 bolts from the front flange

Here you can see how the mounting for the turbo works. This is only temporary for the test stand, and other mounting locations will be attached to the combustor and pipe works.

Combustor welded to the elbow pipe and reducer

Here the combustor has been welded to the curved pipe and reducer. It was then fitted to the turbo. The design is not the best for airflow, as straighter pipe sections would have been the best. The design had to be small though as the bike frame is so small. The area in the bike where this turbo can mounted restricts what we can do. From the uppermost point in the frame where the turbo can mount, to the ground below is a scant 20 inches. The original exhaust on the bike had only 3 inches of ground clearance! This design will give us the same, as it is only 17 inches top to bottom.

The bend from the turbo to the compressor

Here you can see the severe u- bend the air path must take. This design does work though, and frighteningly enough does not restrict airflow very much at all. In contrast, think of some of the bends you have seen in exhaust lines and air lines when these turbos are mounted on conventional engines. I have seen some pretty drastic stuff, and they still worked, so here's to hoping it all turns out!

The combustor tucks right under the turbo

Here is a great image that shows the combustor tucked right up under the compressor.

Tight clearance between the turbo and combustor

Here you can tell that there is only about 1 inch of clearance from the compressor housing to the combustor. Tight, tight, tight, but it has to be!

Mounting bracket for the combustor

This photo shows the mounting bracket that connects the combustor to the compressor housing. It bolts right up to one of the many screws on the back of the compressor.

The screws on the compressor back that the combustor mounts to

This photo shows the bracket again, and if you look closely you can make out the screws on the compressor housing that it bolts to.

View of the tight package of the engine

Just another view of this tightly packed menagerie of metal.

There will be little ground clearance

This thing is gonna sit low to the ground!

Lloyd, Russ, and Ryan

This is the Bad Bros. Jet Bike Build Team!
let to right Lloyd - Russ - Ryan
Lloyd and Ryan are my helping hands when I just can't hold it all together. They just walked up one day and started working on it with me. Good friends, good fun, lotsa laughs.

The Bad Brothers Jet Bike Build Team

Sorry that you can't see Ryan that well. This brothas Wesley Snipes kinda dark. When I first met him, he was wearing a shirt that said "I Shot Tupac". Crazy is a good beginning in describing him. Lloyd lives right down the road, and is well, just Lloyd. Indescribable, in a good way. Lloyd first walked up with a mohawk and couldn't help but giggle and remember when I had one in my younger days. When I get sponsorship for this thing, they are going on the road as part of the team. Both have military backgrounds in aviation and jet engines. As for me, I don't like to describe myself so I will use words that others have said about me. "This guy can build or fix anything" - Ollie my neighbor. I am an aviation mechanic and build C-130 Cargo planes for a military contractor.

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